


In Another Universe

by vajallie



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Ending, Confide and Confess, F/M, NejiTen Month, NejiTen Month 2019, One Shot, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-04
Packaged: 2020-01-04 20:53:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18351497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vajallie/pseuds/vajallie
Summary: It’s an alternative universe, a dream, a way of escaping reality. Except when it’s not. The dire consequences begin when a life is lost. And you think you’ve got nothing to lose. Because in the end, the ones that are dead are already gone. And you will be another piece sacrificed to gain the upper hand in the War. In war, you can’t be the odd one out. And in war, a dearest person must die.A literal hole is what’s left of the impression of him. The cold fear that he will never come back shakes you awake. You remember now, that you are in a war, that people can die, that you must survive. Yet, the inclination that he will not be there to see the glory with you shatters the hopes of this War. You know you can win, but there is no will to fight if he’s not there beside you. ‘You comfort someone else, as you might think it will help evade the sore splinter in your throat. The greatest lump manages to bloom, but you are in War. Tears and woeful sobs must wait.This was all you can do: win the war for him.





	In Another Universe

**Author's Note:**

> It's Nejiten month!  
> Written in Tenten's perspective during War and later, shortly in Neji's perspective.  
> A monologue/soliloquy/ aside of Tenten and of Neji.

 

This is all you can do: win the war for him. 

 

2 Months Ago: The War is Over

It is the final round, the last bullet to dodge. Will he live? You contemplate. You sit idly and wait for the news. The medical tent smells bloody. And you, your knuckles sore from constantly rubbing them. The bruise on your cheekbone hasn’t healed yet. Your torn ligament hasn’t healed yet. Your neck is in its process of healing. Yet you feel fine, you feel healthy. But is he fine? Is he okay? It is the only thing running through your mind. Will he live? Will he live?

The door opens and you hear your dearest muse's mutter. He is awake. Breathing. He's' Alive. You overwhelm with greatness. You must be joyful, elated. Yet, what you cannot feel is the feeling of being so happy. Instead, you cry. You cry and you can't bear to see him. He returns to you and delivers himself to you from death's gates. Yet you can't face him. At least, not here. Not as you are now, not as the broken person you are.

 

Now: You Come to Me

_ Tenten's Point of View _

I can see clearly now, how ridiculous I was. I couldn’t save you. I chose a different path and no one was there to save you. I could have saved you. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. And you almost left me. I can’t say I’m sorry. When I saw you, scarred, bandaged, lifeless, I was scared to approach you. And so, just from afar, I count your shallow breaths, how your chest heaves up and down and listens to the rhythmic tune of your heartbeat. I reassure myself every passing day that you are fine, that you are living. 

But as you stand before me, I realize how much it hurts. I realize how much it hurts to see every depth of the scar, every crater, every dune, and marks it carves itself onto you. And I tell myself how selfish I was to run away, knowing how much pain you must have been in and how much you would have wanted me by your side. And it hit me, how I cannot live to bear the fact that you almost died. Because then and there, right now, as I speak, I try to find ways to excuse for the fact that I care for you. I try to excuse my love for you, masking my love for you under the unconditional care for you. I’m lying to myself because I know deeply that I like you, that I love you. I want to be with you. I want you to love me back. And I know in heaven’s hell that I do not deserve you even the slightest. 

When you awoke from that call of death, a dozen people nurture you with their arms wide open. And when I wake, I am alone. Because everyone was hurt, because I was the earliest to recover first, I felt alone. Alone, that you were below the Earth, passing by the universe like a soaring bird who only perches at the highest peak. 

I tell myself that I should have been born in another universe. A universe where I am flourished with love and care; where I feel loved. And in that universe, that care and love come from you. Instead of the "you" who shines like the stars with pure full moons in your eyes, in this universe, you are the blades of grass that roots from the ground. You are not the wind that flows with ease. You don't visit every part of the world. You don't leave like the seasons. You stay here in one place. And only in this place, you remain unchanging.  

In this universe, I am only a mere piece: a pawn. I am the frontline soldier who is supposed to be the first to die. I cannot compare to the shooting star that is you, who fell upon this Earth. Yet you fell into my plain and dirty hands. I shouldn't keep you. You are a special one and you should be shared.  I cannot merely just love you. In this world, I was not meant to love you. You are too precious for me. Like a gem, I dropped you and almost shattered you. You almost didn't come back to me. Why must you stand before me?

I can’t look at you, I am fearful.

 

_..._

 

_Neji's Point of View_

I waited for you to come but you never did. This is why I must stand before you. You knew that I needed you but you never came. You made me wait. As if time wasn't precious, you continue to make me wait. Please let me see your face. I want to apologize. Because I wasn't thinking straight, because I wasn't thinking of you. In the last moment, as I believed it was my last breath, you came to my mind. An explosion of longing overwhelmed me. I wanted to see you before I lose my life. And I regretted my stupid sacrifice. Seeing you smile, seeing you with me. These were the memories I keep to stay alive.

If you stray too far from me, how can I ever have the chance to tell you? I like you. And I love you. I love you more than I like you. And I want to truly see you smile right before my eyes. So please look at me. 

In a universe like this, I only want you. From the vast skies that you may have been in, I cling onto the thought I catching a glimpse of you. I only want you. From the labyrinth of the stars and galaxies, from every emotion to every memory, only you make them connect to me. If not you, then who?

 

_ It can't be me, Neji. _

 

It can only be you, Tenten. You don't have to ask for another universe to live in to be loved. This is your universe. Right here. Our universe. I will flourish you with love and care. You come to me in the most pleasant way. So don't speak, don't say another word. It can only be you. 

It is you. 

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know why I wrote it in 2nd person and then in 1st person.  
> Please forgive me, 
> 
> and Happy Nejiten Month!


End file.
